The English actor Stephen Fry, who has personally battled with manic depression, once stated, “If you know someone who’s depressed, please resolve never to ask them why. Depression isn’t a straightforward response to a bad situation; depression just is, like the weather.” Depression doesn’t occur by choice. It’s a serious mental health condition with genetic, environmental, and neurochemical components. You can’t tell someone who’s depressed that they have no valid reasons to be depressed, just as you can’t tell them to “snap out of it.” Depression is real, involuntary, and it can be debilitating.
Fortunately Thriveworks is here to help. The licensed depression counselors at Thriveworks in Odessa, TX have extensive experience with helping clients overcome their depression. They can treat postpartum depression (PPD), seasonal affective disorder (SAD), bipolar disorder, persistent depressive disorder (PDD)—also known as dysthymia, which is a depressive episode that lasts longer than two years—and other types of depression.
How to Know If You Have Clinical Depression
The DSM-5, which is the most recent version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders used by mental health professionals to diagnose psychiatric conditions, has eight criteria for diagnosing depression:
- A depressed mood that sticks around for longer than two weeks (continuously feeling sad and/or negative)
- Anhedonia (losing interest or pleasure in activities you normally enjoy)
- Changes in appetite and/or consequent weight loss or gain
- Psychomotor retardation (slowed-down thoughts and actions)
- Fatigue and exhaustion
- Overwhelming feelings of sadness, guilt, or worthlessness
- Problems with focus and/or memory
- Suicidality (If you are ever considering hurting yourself or someone else, call a crisis hotline immediately.)
Other depression indications that aren’t in the DSM-5, but that a licensed depression counselor at Thriveworks in Odessa, TX might look for, include the following:
- Psychomotor agitation (sped-up thoughts and actions)
- Sleeping too much or too little (insomnia)
- Changes in sex drive (libido)
- Irritability (which may indicate depression in men more than women)
- Self-medication through substance abuse or addiction
- Isolation
Why Is Depression Common in the US?
Depression isn’t just common in the United States; it’s common everywhere. More than 264 million people in the world suffer from depression. And no one is immune. Even rich and famous celebrities have opened up about their struggles with depression, for example:
- Chrissy Teigen
- Lady Gaga
- Jon Hamm
- Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
- Katy Perry
- Kerry Washington
- Taraji P. Henson
- Kristen Bell
Today’s young people are also more prone to depression, perhaps because of online behaviors like social media addiction. And female teenagers develop depression at twice the rate of males. The depression counselors at Thriveworks in Odessa, TX work with children and teens everyday to help give them coping strategies and preventative measures that may last a lifetime.
How Do Counselors and Psychiatrists Treat Depression?
There are numerous effective, evidence-based ways to treat depression and prevent future episodes. The expert depression counselors at Thriveworks in Odessa, TX use a variety of therapeutic tools and approaches, including the following:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which helps change maladaptive thought patterns and beliefs
- Psychotherapy
- Interpersonal therapy
- Psychodynamic therapy
- Holistic remedies like meditation and mindfulness
- Family therapy or couples therapy
- Journaling
- Behavioral activation
- Problem-solving therapy
- Psychiatric medications prescribed by a licensed Thriveworks psychiatrist
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved numerous psychotropic drugs to treat depression, including:
- Serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
- Selective serotonin & norepinephrine inhibitors (SNRIs)
- Bupropion
- Tetracyclic antidepressants
- Serotonergic antidepressants
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)
- N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) Receptor Antagonists
It’s always better to intervene early if you’re starting to feel depressed, especially if you have a history of depression. In the long-term, untreated depression may lead to social isolation, heart disease, a compromised immune system, weight gain, and sometimes even chronic physical pain.
Discover Effective Treatments for Your Depression with a Provider at Thriveworks in Odessa, TX
With professional help, depression is highly treatable and can go into remission for years or a lifetime. But it helps to be resourceful and proactive by contacting the best depression counselors in Odessa, TX—the licensed therapists at Thriveworks. Thriveworks depression counselors can meet with you online or in-person at the Odessa office, and they accept most health insurance so you get premium mental health care at affordable prices.
As an added client benefit at Thriveworks, you can also contact your provider by phone or email between sessions. And most clients can get in to see their provider for an initial session within 24-48 hours of their first call to the office. Plus you don’t have to wait: More than 97% of Thriveworks therapy sessions begin early or on time.
